WORCESTER, Mass. -- Venus Williams returned from a five-month layoff, and Serena Williams and Christina McHale won singles matches Sunday, sending the United States past Belarus 5-0 in the first round of the Fed Cup.
By blanking Belarus in World Group II, the Americans head to a playoff in April in hopes of playing their way back into the top tier of the Fed Cup after getting bounced last year.
Venus Williams and Liezel Huber completed the shutout with a doubles victory, defeating Darya Kustova and Anastasiya Yakimova 6-1, 6-2. This was Williams' first sanctioned match since the opening round of the U.S. Open. She had been diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome, an autoimmune disease that can cause fatigue and joint pain.
McHale won in straight sets for the second consecutive day, beating Darya Kustova 6-0, 6-1 to put the U.S. up 4-0.
Serena Williams already had guaranteed a U.S. victory earlier in the day by defeating Anastasiya Yakimova 5-7, 6-1, 6-1. Serena blew a 4-1 lead in the opening set and slammed her racket on the court after one point, then returned to form in the next two sets. She didn't allow a point in two straight games of the final set.
Boonen opens with win: Tom Boonen of Belgium won the opening stage of the Tour of Qatar in Doha, finishing four seconds ahead of Adam Blythe of Britain. Boonen, a former world road racing champion, riding for Omega Pharma Quick-Step, completed the 88.5-mile first stage in 3 hours, 11 minutes, 22 seconds.
Nearing a verdict on his Tour de France doping case after a 17-month wait, Alberto Contador finished 98th in the Mallorca (Spain) Challenge.
The Spaniard was set to return to Madrid after the race. The Court of Arbitration for Sport will rule today on whether Contador will be banned after returning a positive drug test in winning the 2010 Tour.
